WOMEN's activities

WOMEN will raise awareness among stakeholders and the target group of well-educated young women as project partners bundle their knowledge, pilot innovative approaches to mitigate female brain-drain from the partner regions. The project will transfer conclusions from their scientific monitoring and scientific review into a Transnational Strategy and Joint Action Plan. Pilot actions are: initiation of a transnational competition called “women are future – award” , implementation of an awareness raising campaign, implementation of demograhy coaches and promotion of social networks for businesswoman.

WOMEN – Objectives

The main objective of the project is to put into action a transnational strategy to mitigate the brain-drain of well-qualified young women from rural central European regions based on the scientific results and recommendations from the ESPON targeted analysis SEMIGRA.

The project aims to improve pull-factors discouraging outbound migration of young females. The approach hereby is to enhance the conditions that allow young women to participate in knowledge management processes to obtain the necessary qualifications to achieve professional careers without migration.

WOMEN – Description

A number of central European regions are challenged by the outbound migration of well-educated young women. This results in severe sex-ratio imbalances among the working-age population of these regions and a lack of highly skilled labour. Social cohesion, economic competitiveness and employment are consequently at stake.

For to the regional demographic development, the outbound migration of young people has a double negative impact: on one hand, the outbound migration of young people increases the median age of the population and the aging of the entire society. On the other hand, future demographic perspectives are worsened as smaller numbers of women aged 16-35 lead to fewer new-born children and to a long-term depopulation of the area.

The project WOMEN aims to find solutions to limit a further brain-drain of young females from rural areas already severely challenged by demographic change.

women are future – award

All in all more than 100 applications reached us for the women are future – award. In december 2013 the first Jury-Meeting with 18 members from all partner regions took place in Berlin. The international jury selected the first winners of the competition. In addition to the international level there had been regional competitions as well. The international award ceremony took place on Thursday, March 13th 2014 in Magdeburg, Germany. The results have been published in our WOMENbrochure and on facebook. Please find portrait videos of the international winner on our you tube channel “WOMEN Central Europe Project”. More information from the different regions are available here.

networks and partner

All partners are working together with different organisations in their countries to reduce the migration of young women in rural areas in their regions.

Social networks of successful female entrepreneurs and senior staff will be supported by the project partners to increase the social detachment of women to their regions.